Photo credit: Beckett Rankine
Ambitious plans for a four-runway offshore mega hub airport in the English Channel have been unveiled.
The £40bn scheme would be based on a man-made island off the coast of Kent.
The idea, put forward by maritime engineers Beckett Rankine, would allow for 24-hour operations because aircraft would take off and land over water, limiting disruption to residents on the mainland.
The proposed Goodwin Sands site would use the existing high-speed rail connection to get passengers into London in 40 minutes.
Linked to the mainland by an underwater train tunnel, the airport would have space for four runways a mile apart and could eventually accommodate six.
The site, two miles from Margate and Broadstairs, would not interfere with shipping lanes, according to details released to the London Evening Standard.
A spokesman for the firm said: “We believe an offshore hub airport is the only option that can realistically provide the four new, independent runways London needs. Siting it at Goodwin will have the least adverse impact of any option.”